This book was very interesting and I leraned a lot BUT I think it woudl be best read AFTEr reading a more general history of the Roma because this was half history half memoir and very selected history.

Madeline Potter combines travel writing and historical research to tell the story of her community in a way that makes you feel like you are traveling along with her. Madeline, who is Romani and was born and raised in Romania, travels to multiple European countries as well as the United States to share both historical information about the Romani community in each place and information on communities today. She shares information about famous Rom figures, the history of each community arriving in the country, and explores the challenges and joys each community has faced historically. Potter gives a peek at her emotions and deeper connection with her culture as she goes on this journey, making it all the more meaningful, as we see its impact, and even healing power, within her life as she connects with those she shares a heritage with. One of the most interesting aspects Potter shares is how much Rom culture has impacted Europe and how much music, dance, and literature that we associate with different countries was originally brought to those countries or influenced by Rom culture.

Over on my booktube channel (Hannah's Books), I shared this book in my description of exciting books forthcoming in early July. Link to the particular discussion: https://youtu.be/PkB94Of64TI?si=pNpb5Hgfmeklu1RJ&t=390

When I was a teenager, I developed a keen interest in learning about various ethnic groups and religions. Moreover, I wanted to read all I could on prejudices and discrimination. It never dawned on me at the time to read about “gypsies”, as they were known to most of us back then. We only saw them in TV shows or movies, almost always as fortune tellers. The only movie I ever saw that painted a much clearer picture of them was a 1994 TV one called “Christmas Reunion”. Why it was being passed off as a Christmas film was beyond me, because only the first and last five minutes or so were about Christmastime. The rest of the movie was about a teenage boy named Tim in Wales who was half Roma and half gadjo. Tim was a very proud Roma who did not accept his mixed heritage, but the past had caught up with him and he had to deal with it.

Madeline Potter deals with Roma life in all sorts of ways in this book. She looks at their history, starting with their origin in India; at how they are and were treated in various countries, such as Germany, the US, the UK, France, Spain and Sweden; the many ways they have faced all sorts of discrimination and stereotyping; their art, music and dancing, including flamenco; famous Romani individuals, such as Katarina Taikon-Langhammer; oral tales passed down through the ages, etc. One very sad thing the author dealt with was the Holocaust. I’ve read countless books and watched many movies and documentaries about the Holocaust, and what happened to the Romani people was hardly ever or barely mentioned, even though hundreds of thousands of them were persecuted and murdered by the Nazis.

Ms. Potter also includes many of her own experiences as a Romani woman, both good and bad. A most interesting thing is how she is so often recognized by fellow Romani individuals as one of them wherever she goes. That does make her happy. While her book was a wealth of information and certainly educated me about Roma life, I am only giving it three stars because I thought it was written in a disorganized way. It jumped from one thing to another, from one person to another, from one place to another, so much that at times I had to stop reading for a while. I always returned to it, however, and stuck with it to the end. The ARC unfortunately did not have the photographs that will be included in the final copy, photos that will most certainly add to helping the reader to picture Roma life throughout time.

A well-researched book that reads like smooth fiction. A historical analysis blended so well with an autobiography and travel notes, that it becomes easy to read and engaging. Each chapter takes us on a different location: Britain, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Austria, Germany, France, Spain, the US and Sweden. A beautiful and sad read, totally worth it!

A fantastic introduction to the vast and diverse Romani people. Each chapter covers a different country where Roma have history, and blends a short history of the relationship of each state to its Romani people with a travelogue of the author visiting with each community or her own experience and family history. Thanks to NetGalley and Harper for the e-ARC.